Best research achievements of the University of Ljubljana in 2017

Best research achievements of the University of Ljubljana in 2017

Publish Date: 04.12.2017

Category: News from the University

The presentation of best research achievements of the University of Ljubljana in 2017 was the first event within the traditional University of Ljubljana Week, which annually honours the founding of the University’s activity. This year, the largest and oldest university in Slovenia, which sits among the distinguished universities of the world, celebrates 98 years of operation. The University of Ljubljana has contributed more than half of the scientific results in the Slovenian treasure trove of knowledge.

“Every year, a few dozen research achievements come to life at the University of Ljubljana. We want to be noticed, both within the University and within society. Within the University, such achievements should serve as encouragement to all researchers, not only in terms of increasing the scope, but mainly in terms of raising the quality of research. Consequently, we inform our society that considering the assets invested, our mission is met at the highest level,” the Rector of the University of Ljubljana Prof. Dr. Igor Papič said at the opening of the traditional University of Ljubljana Week. He further pointed out that the University of Ljubljana attempts to foster even more research and achieve top-quality results, and to support this aim the Development Fund, through which the University encourages applications for research projects, has been operating successfully for a number of years. “At the University we have also established numerous strategic partnerships.With the CELSA alliance universities we have set up a special fund for preparing applications for European projects. The new call for applications has already been published. We are hoping to initiate similar collaborations with the neighbouring universities, with universities of the European university network The Guild, and with Chinese, South-Korean and Japanese universities with which we have signed partnership cooperation agreements,” the Rector added.

In his main speech the full professor and Vice-Dean of the Veterinary Faculty of the University of Ljubljana Prof. Dr. Gregor Majdič highlighted science as the motive force of progress. “We have to thank science for everything it has achieved in the past decades and centuries that brought us to where we are now, when we live, at least in our part of the world, as comfortably, easy-going and happier than ever before in the history of mankind. We seem to forget that only a few decades ago people, especially children, were dying in large numbers, that our great-grandfathers and great-grandmothers were often hungry, that people were dying much younger than today,” Majdič made his point clear and critically added that we keep forgetting this because of today’s comfort, and that more and more people reject science: “Even though, for the time being, scientists are still among those groups which enjoy the highest reputation, many people nowadays no longer clearly see the meaning of science in this society. Politics responds accordingly, even though it should support our field, but in fact displays a step-motherly attitude.” Despite a reduction in funding for science in recent years, he pointed out that luckily financial assets alone are not the pre-requisite for significant discoveries. “This makes me even more pleased, as we prove that we keep trying. That we still nurture a desire to discover and create something new, by actively contributing to the development of society we will continue to contribute to its future as well.”

The Vice-Rector of the University of Ljubljana for the field of scientific and research work Prof. Dr. Matjaž Krajnc believes that conditions for research work at the University are becoming less and less favourable. “The responsible persons at ministries do not want to understand the inseparable correlation of the education process with research work, which is urgently required for the quality of the former. The recently published draft Research and Development Act does not consider universities as fundamental carriers of scientific and research activity, and it does not provide the teaching staff with the equal status of researchers.” He is certain that society would be unable to respond to the challenges of the fast-changing world without the University, which is efficient in education, research and innovations, and is strongly linked to its surrounding area. “Research is part of the basic mission of the University and is an irreplaceable part of quality. Research, educational and artistic activity at the University comprises a wide range of scientific disciplines, which exceed the limitations of an individual industry, contribute to universality and make way for interdisciplinarity,” Krajnc added.

In the selection of the greatest research achievements of the University of Ljubljana in 2017, the working group appointed by the Commission for Science and Research work of the University of Ljubljana prioritised scientific excellence, which is supported by citations and influence of the journal in which each article was published. The Commission also took note of the large differences among the disciplines. The selection was also influenced by the uniformity of the achievement, appeal to the wider professional and general public, benefits of use and interdisciplinarity. All proposals were discussed equally, irrespective of which discipline they come from and irrespective of whether researches are basic or directly applicable.

Best research achievements of the University of Ljubljana in 2017:

1. An Early Mechanical Coupling of Planktonic Bacteria in Dilute SolutionsBiotechnical Faculty of the University of LjubljanaAUTHORS: Simon Sretenović, Biljana Stojković, Iztok Dogša, Rok Kostanjšek, Igor Poberaj, David Stopar

2. Seismic Retrofitting of Historic Masonry Structures with the Use of Base Isolation – Modelling and Analysis AspectsFaculty of Architecture of the University of LjubljanaAUTHORS: Simon Petrovčič, Vojko Kilar

3. Why is There a Lack of Evidence on Knowledge Spillovers from Foreign Direct Investment?Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of LjubljanaAUTHORS: Matija Rojec, Mark Knell

4. New method for the determination of a measure of band gaps at optoelectronic componentsFaculty of Electrical Engineering of the University of LjubljanaAUTHORS: Matevž Bokalič, Marko Topič, Bart E. Pieters, Andreas Gerber, Uwe Rau

5. Molecular mechanism of the survival of bacteria in stress conditionsFaculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology of the University of LjubljanaAUTHORS: San Hadži, Igor Drobnak, Andrej Mernik, Črtomir Podlipnik, Remy Loris, Jurij Lah

6. Bronze-mean hexagonal quasicrystalFaculty of Mathematics and Physics of the University of LjubljanaAUTHORS: Primož Ziherl, Tomonari Dotera, Shinichi Bekku

7. A Novel Performance Evaluation Methodology for Single-Target TrackersFaculty of Computer and Information Science of the University of LjubljanaAUTHORS: Matej Kristan, Aleš Leonardis, Luka Čehovin Zajc